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IDA Ireland is expected to tell the Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment that it has sight of a healthy pipeline of investments for the first half of next year but that it will be slightly weaker than this year.

The agency is due to appear before the committee, along with Technology Ireland, to discuss challenges facing the technology sector.

“Notwithstanding the current challenges and uncertainty in the global environment, IDA client companies are generally optimistic on the prospects for their businesses, and we have sight of a healthy pipeline for the first half of 2023, albeit slightly weaker than in H1 2022,” according to the opening statement of Interim CEO of IDA Ireland Mary Buckley.

“When layoffs occur, as we have seen with some high-profile global technology companies in recent weeks, our first concern is with those who are losing their jobs,” Ms Buckley is expected to say.

“Working with colleagues across the Government system and with our large portfolio of multinational companies, IDA will do all we can to match these employees to the extensive employment opportunities that still exist across the economy,” she will add.

TDs and Senators are also expected to be told that the IDA is actively engaged with its technology client base and is providing regular updates to the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

“The companies that have announced job losses will continue to operate in Ireland, many of them at a considerable scale,” according to the IDA.

Technology Ireland, the Ibec body that represents the tech industry, is expected to tell the committee that the sector will continue to grow in Ireland in 2023 but at a lower level than it has over the last two years.

“While the news of recent weeks regarding redundancies in a small number of companies is disappointing and deeply upsetting for the individuals impacted there remains a high demand for tech talent in this country, in particular in our indigenous tech companies who found it challenging to hire at pace over the last two years,” according to the opening statement of Una Fitzpatrick, Director of Technology Ireland.

Speaking ahead of the meeting, Committee Cathaoirleach Maurice Quinlivan said that they welcomed the opportunity to discuss the current challenges facing the technology sector given the recent job losses at Meta, Stripe and Twitter.

“While Ireland remains at the heart of the technology industry in Europe and is a place to do business, multinational companies must be mindful of their legal responsibilities regarding collective redundancies and must comply with Irish employment laws,” Mr Quinlivan said.

Article Source: Investments looking ‘slightly weaker’ next year – IDA – Brian O’Donovan – RTE

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